Well, I just got back from hunting in Pa with my Dad on the farm that we go to, and I was delighted to see that the original car which inspired me to do the “Rust Bunnies” car diorama was still way up on the hill! I haven’t been to this spot in years, but went up to put on a drive for my Dad, and here it was. I never knew what it was, nor ever really had a chance to explore it, but it used to be in a field of more briars and brambles–almost impossible to get to. Over the years, the briar field has been greatly reduced–a cell phone tower was put very close–and the car is now more exposed.We would hunt rabbits in this field, back before the coyotes moved in and pretty much decimated the population. They’d always run to this car and disappear around it…
SO here it is–it’s an old “Mercury Eight” – does anyone know what year this might be?
Shure is a shame that those old cars rot on someones land. as a former car restorer i wish some of those old guys would let people buy them, I remember an old guy had a ford 1940 deluxe coupe sittting in the back of his farm, it was worth maybe 500 bucks he wanted an un real amount of money for it and that was back in 88. the picks look good but you can keep the snow Karl.[:D]
The Mercury Eight was the first post-WWII Merc built, and was only built between 1949 & 1951. The original Sam Barris Lead Sled was a '49 Merc Eight, and that became the definitive Lead Sled like the ‘32 Ford V8 became synonymous for Hot Rod. Slam it on the ground, chop the top and shave the chrome off, french in the lights, maybe add some louvers to the hood and go cruisin’!
I couldn’t tell you what exact year that “lair” was from, but sure is a shame its rotting in a field instead of living large on some cruising strip.
Karl i talked to my dad and he said its a 1948 merc they started this body style in 1945 i trust him hes been sround cars and owned quite a few shops in his life.
Thanks, Robert, and Bill, for the info! And for that link, Robert! Now I have to see if I can find a model of it? Doesn’t seem like there’s many of them out there…?
Once they started building cars for retail sale after WWII they used the older bodies and upgraded the trim. Sure looks like a '48 to me. By '49 the shoebox style was firmly in Fords production line.
I’m having a hard time with the engine pics, can anyone tell the number of studs on the heads? A 24 stud flathead would be right on the money for a '48 I believe.
Overdone? I don’t know about that one… I feel like it could use a lot more streaking, and the color of the rust looks too uniform. I’m not even sure if there’s any texture on this one either. Too painted on… at least the snow looks good Doog, and wow! How’d you make that spring seat?
[:D]
But in all seriousness, this makes the “Rust Bunnies” dio that much cooler. I feel like you should frame one of these pictures and display it with the model.
Sounds like a Christmas gift for Dad [;)] that’d be two models to two loved ones in one year! [:-^]
That is really, really cool. Seeing the real thing and the interpratation that became your dio gives us the viewing audience a nice little peek into your mind as an artist. It’s really not that scary of a place [;)].
You know what strikes me as the strangest thing about the real car? The chrome trim… how after all those years it’s managed to stay in such great shape is beyond me. I thought for sure it would be rusted or oxidized in some way, but instead it looks better than the chrome on my current car. Guess they really don’t make 'em like they used to, huh?
I for one really miss the old cars from when I was growing up, (to clarify I am 44 but people did not have the latest piece of “Plastic” on the market" ) Nothing like real chrome plated steel bumpers that did not fall of first time you bumped something. Metal dashes with chrome trim, mohair interiors instead of vinyl…ahhh [sigh]
Doog - I think you did a fantastic job on your replicating your “Lair” from the prototype. Such a nice car to be hidden away, but then again if it was not hid away it might be all shot, stripped, and beat up. That old Merc. looks good enough with a few days of tinkering you could drive it out of there [;)] Thanks for sharing the pictures. [tup]
They used to have quite a few other really “Golden Oldies” up there–an old, ancient Pontiac, a Belvedere with some huge engine still in it, and an old, 50’s Buick. They sold em off for scrap two years ago, when the cell phone tower went up. Man, I wish I had my digital camera before they let them take them away! I would have loved to photograph them all!
Jon, that chrome seems to stay like that on most old junked cars–when I researched junkyard cars, almost all of them that I found on the internet were with bright, gleaming chrome!
